What kind of bait to catch a raccoon?
What Is The Best Bait To Catch A Raccoon? - Raccoons have a varied diet, and as you will have seen if they have ever got into a garbage sack, they can be quite messy eaters and will move items out of the way to get to the food they want. This does help when it comes to trapping raccoons as they can be attracted by different types of bait, but there are many other factors worth considering that are even more important when it comes to the chances of success when trying to catch a raccoon. Dealing with a pest animal problem is something that needs to be done quickly and efficiently, and most experts agree that the best way of solving a raccoon problem is by catching and removing the animal.
The Importance Of Bait In Trapping A Raccoon
Bait will often be the factor that first attracts the raccoon towards the trap, because the animal will smell the food, and it can help in the trapping process, but there are plenty of other factors to be considered too. If the bait is excellent, but the trap has simply been placed in the middle of a yard or lawn, then the trap may still be ineffective as the raccoon will be too cautious to go near it. In order to trap a raccoon successfully, you need to make sure you get the right location, along with the right trap and a good bait in order to be successful.
GET HELP: Do you need professional help with a raccoon problem? We have wildlife experts servicing almost every area of the USA! HIRE US IN YOUR TOWN
COSTS: You may want to read more about raccoons or the prices we charge for our services: READ ABOUT OUR RACCOON PRICES
Fruit And Vegetables As Bait
Because raccoons are omnivores that will be able to eat a variety of different foods, they are often attracted by sweet fruits such as watermelons, strawberries and apples can be very successful as a bait. Vegetables may not be quite as successful by themselves, but if vegetables such as carrots, sweetcorn or onions are drizzled with a little honey, they can still act as a successful bait and may draw the raccoons into the trap.
Although it is neither a fruit nor a vegetable, the marshmallow is one of the best baits that has been tried and tested, and the sweet scent along with the fact that raccoons may naturally be drawn to the size and shape due to a perceived similarity to an egg.
Meat And Fish
When you see the garbage bags that have been ripped open by raccoons, it is often the meat or fish inside those bags that have been taken, and this is because the potent scent draws the animal. The more heavily scented the meat or fish is makes it more likely to attract the animals, so cooked fatty meat such as chicken, cooked bacon or canned fish can be particularly effective as a bait. Because of this attraction to the scent, wet cat food is also often used as a bait, and with such a range of bait available in most homes, there is no need to purchase one of the commercially produced baits for raccoons.
Should You Use Poison Bait?
Poison is one of the most destructive ways of dealing with an animal problem, whether you are dealing with small rodents or even larger animals such as coyotes, and raccoons should not be dealt with by using poison either. Poison is an indiscriminate killer, meaning that it is very difficult to place it in a location where it cannot be accessed by pets or other animals, and because it can be hard to find the carcass this will often attract other pest animals before you actually find the dead raccoon.
The Importance Of Trap Location
One of the most important aspects of successfully using a trap to catch a raccoon is to place the trap in the right place, and examining where the raccoon is getting in and out of your yard or garden is a good place to start. If you have a raccoon living in an attic or in a cavity under decking or under a shed on your property, then seeing where they come in and out of these spaces is also a good place to start. Try to avoid placing the trap directly over the entry point, rather put it around a yard or so from the entry point, and consider putting a small amount of the bait in front of the entrance to the trap to draw the raccoon in.
Cleaning And Placing The Trap
A factor that can affect how successful a trap will be is whether or not the raccoon will be picking up your scent on the trap, as many raccoons will be naturally wary of humans. The best step is to wash the trap before you place it, and after washing only using gloves to handle the trap. When it comes to placing the trap in the desired location, consider whether or not much of the metal can be hidden by placing it under a bush, while it is also best to weight the trap down with a brick or a rock to stop the animal from tipping it over.
Go back to the main Raccoon Removal page for more information about what type of bait to use to trap a raccoon. What kind of food do you put in a raccoon trap to catch the animal? What is the best raccoon bait?
